Bouncing down the roadway one day it occurs to you that things are just not what they should be. The pathway you are riding on is as smooth as glass, yet your car is jostling up and down like nobodys business. You enter an upcoming curve in the pathway and quickly learn that the control you had over your car was lost just moments before. Suddenly, the vehicle careens off the roadway , goes down through a ditch and up an embankment before coming to rest against a fence adjacent to Tonys garage. You are in luck: you arent dead and your car is at Tonys, who happens to be your most adored mechanic.

Yes this story is ridiculous, exceedingly so. All joking aside, your shock absorbers [or struts in the case of some cars] plays a vital part in your vehicles suspension system. When certain signs of wear and tear become obvious, you must replace your shocks or otherwise you might put yourself in danger and/or damage your car.

A shock absorber works by damping the compression and extension of the vehicles suspension springs to prevent ongoing movement. Shocks work to diminish roadway impact, prevent excessive bounce back, reduce sway, and improve general roadway handling. When your shocks are functioning properly your vehicle grips to the road whether you are braking, negotiating a curve in the pathway, driving on uneven roads, or experiencing powerful side winds. When worn out, shocks might play a part in you losing control of your car putting you and many people else in harms way.

How often should you replace your shocks? One manufacturer suggests no less than once every 50,000 miles, but that depends on whether you frequently drive on coarse roads [in this case it will need to occur quicker ] or it could even be much later if you do mostly local driving, the roads are well maintained, etc.

There is a simple test you may perform on your car to establish whether your shocks absolutely need replacing. It isnt absolute, therefore you may want to take your vehicle to a garage to build certain:

Take hold of a corner of your vehicles bumper.

Press down on the bumper with all of your strength and then let go.

Your shocks are most definately okay if the bumper drops down and returns in place without rebounding again. Slight movement is okay, but if it continually moves, then that particular shock is no longer efficient. Duplicate the test on the remaining three corners of your vehicle.

Other telltale signs of shock wear might be observed through leakage [although a leak is not always indicative of wear] and by observing tire wear patterns. Finally, if you are simply experiencing motion sickness every time you go for a ride, then that might be the best indicator that your shocks or struts need replacing. No kidding here!